FUN / TRAVEL
How a Sushi Lunch Box Can Take You to Distant Places
Lunch on a Saturday afternoon in a shopping plaza
It was noon, and time for my son’s indoor soccer practice to end.
While all the parents watching made their way over to the kids to grab their gear, my husband turned to me and said,
“So what do you want to do for lunch?”
Nearby was a fun diner. It’s a family-friendly spot that had once been a bank but now serves traditional American foods. You can still see the vault in the back that was remodeled as part of the bar. The kids like the classic cheeseburger and fries there of course.
Then I remembered my son’s comment about wanting sushi earlier in the week.
“How about sushi and Thai food?” I asked the kids.
Without hesitation, my son heard sushi and was all in.
But my daughter on the other hand was a little harder to convince.
Walking into the sushi and Thai restaurant, we were greeted by a kind hostess that had a welcoming smile. The sushi counter was to the right where I could already see two men busy preparing various sushi rolls.
I noticed a couple of Saturday football games playing on the TVs as I motioned to my son.
Meanwhile, my daughter was holding her nose embarrassingly in disgust.
“The smells, Mommy.”
She’s five and right at that age where anything strong-smelling evokes an “Ooo, gross” reaction. For example, I made salmon the other day, and she wouldn’t come downstairs until the smell had disappeared.
Kids are weird sometimes.
Walking to our table of four, I told her we were going to pretend we were traveling to a different place today. Pulling up Google on my phone, I showed her where Thailand was on the map. If she wanted to adventure to far-off places someday with us, she would have to start trying new things (including smelling new things).
She seemed entertained enough to go along with my game. But I think it’s the chopsticks on the table that truly swayed her.
Looking through the menu, my son thought he would upgrade from the normal California roll to the spicy California roll (daring I know, but for 7-year-olds I was proud of him for getting something a little different).
We settled on yakisoba for my daughter so she could get her noodles.
Then instead of my normal order of pad Thai, I found another option that utterly delighted me — the sushi lunch box options.
Out of the 7 different lunch box options I went with Box #3. It included 6 California rolls, 3 spicy tuna rolls, edamame, the house salad, one spring roll, and a smaller portion of vegetable pad Thai. Not pictured was also the miso soup.
My lunch was delicious.
It contained the perfect balance between sweet and salty all through the box, and there wasn’t a bite left when I was finished.
Not only did I get a few different things to try, but it also gave me a chance to talk about the variety of foods with my kids. I did my best to explain Thai culture, but now after reading more from D J Hopkins I have so much more to learn.
My daughter ended up eating most of my edamame, and my son and I finished off all the ginger at the end. We both agreed its spicy kick and heat were addictive.
What really stole the show; however, were the sushi boats.
The guy at the table beside us ordered sushi on a slightly smaller version of a boat seen above. I was too shy to take a picture.
But my kids were in awe.
“How do we get one of those ships, Mommy?”
The color and presentation were something to admire. It wasn’t only the food that tasted good, but the creative way it was placed on the plate or served on a ship (as my kids would say) that was hard to ignore.
It was art.
My kids found themselves transported to an entirely distant place without going far from their home.
It was an unexpected Saturday lunch that couldn’t have been more filling — both for our stomachs and our minds.
Opting out of the American diner and choosing less familiar foods inspired by a different culture gave my family and me a chance to adventure somewhere new.
No plane tickets or luggage necessary.
Just an open mind, maybe some temporary discomfort (in my daughter’s case with the smells), and a willingness to try new things.
When you can’t travel far, exploring somewhere new through food may be the next best thing.
It seems to be the case for us.
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